Questor Insurance News

Italy reports a significant boom in tourism

Italy is enjoying a significant rise in tourism this year due to political unrest in rival destinations, providing a boost for local restaurants and hotels.

Security concerns across many countries has resulted in growing interest in Italy from travellers, which is expected to result in considerable growth in tourism.

The country expects to exceed 400 million hotel occupancies this year, which would mean the country jumps ahead of France in terms of tourism popularity in Europe.

Last year the average duration of trips to Italy slightly decreased, but the number of hotel occupancies reached 365 million.

“Tourism is without doubt one of the most dynamic sectors of our economy and 2017 could really be a record year for us,” said Patrizia De Luise, head of the national hoteliers’ association.

Italy has seen a gradual upturn in tourism over the years, in 2014 the country was the fifth most-visited in the world, welcoming 48.6 million travellers.

That number was surpassed in 2016, with Venice, Florence and Clinque Terre all seeing a substantial increase in the number of visitors.

In the summer of 2016, 12.9% of long domestic holidays were spent in Puglia, 11.4% in Emilia-Romagna, whereas Trentino-Alto Adige was the first destination during winter (24.8%) and autumn (16.3%).

Despite the upturn in travellers proving to be beneficial to the economy, many areas are struggling to cope with the high levels of tourism.

As a result, the country has made an effort to promote less-travelled areas, particularly targeting repeat visitors who have already seen the major sights.

There have also been efforts to educate travellers about other places to visit in the most popular destinations, for example, most people visit Rome to see the Colosseum but do not travel anywhere else.

If you’re thinking of travelling abroad this year, be sure to organise your European travel insurance in advance